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Longmont council to consider crackdown on long-term RV, camper parking

By John Fryar

Staff Writer

Posted:
08/07/2017 05:32:26 PM MDT

Updated:
08/07/2017 05:51:13 PM MDT

An RV is parked on Delaware Place on Monday in Longmont. (Lewis Geyer / Staff Photographer)

If You Go

What: Longmont's City Council meeting

When: 7 p.m. Tuesday

Where: Civic Center council chambers, 350 Kimbark St., Longmont

More information: The full meeting agenda, along with staff memos on items up for consideration, can be viewed through a link at bit.ly/2ppW15m

Longmont's City Council on Tuesday is to consider an ordinance that would try to address complaints about people living in recreational vehicles or camper trailers that they've parked on city streets.

Late last year and earlier this year, several residents approached City Council members, code enforcement officials, police and the city manager's office about individuals living in RVs and camper trailers on residential streets throughout Longmont.

"These residents complained that RV dwellers have left trash, been disruptive, had unleashed or vicious dogs outside of their vehicles, and/or failed to clean up pet excrement," the city staff reported in a memo for Tuesday night's council meeting.

Once the tire is marked and a prominent notification tag placed on the vehicle, city enforcement staff now gives 24 hours for the vehicle to be moved off that chalk mark before a ticket is issued.

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However, that policy is not adequate in addressing the problem of long-term parking of RVs and camper trailers, the staff noted, because "people skirted the law by simply rolling or driving their vehicle a few inches or feet off of the chalk marks."

The proposed measure up for initial City Council consideration would require that RVs be moved at least 600 feet from their current location within 72 hours after their tires have been marked with chalk.

The city staff said 600 feet is a typical block length in Longmont's original street plats, and that the 72-hour period would give the owners time to load or unload their vehicles before having to move them — a longer-than-24-hour period several council members advocated during a March discussion of the issue.

The measure, which would amend Chapters 11.12 and 11.16 of the existing Longmont Municipal Code "Relating to Impoundment and Abandoned, Publicly Kept, or Junked Vehicles," would contain an exemption if the RV owner is visiting Longmont family or friends and wants to stay on a street for longer than three days.

The amended ordinance would allow visitors or their hosts to get a city permit allowing them to have their RV in one location on the street for up to seven days. If they want to stay longer, they'd have to move the vehicle 600 feet or more from its current location.

Or, they could move it onto private property, as long as it is with the permission of that property's owner. However, RVs or campers parked on residentially zoned private property could not be used as accessory dwelling units and lived in long term.

As is the case with the city's current ordinance, the measure would authorize police to have a vehicle removed when it is left on a street and parked illegally. The measure would allow such removals and impoundments of vehicles that have been parked in one location on a street, alley, highway or other public right-of-way for 72 hours or longer.

Neither the existing parking-limit ordinance nor the proposed amendments would apply to RVs, campers or other vehicles parked in privately owned areas such as parking lots outside retail stores and other commercial buildings.

The new policies in the proposal would provide an exception for contractors working on homes in the block where the contractor's trailer is parked. The contractor would have to place a notice on the trailer identifying the address of the job site, the date the trailer was parked there and contact information about the contractor.

Contractors' trailers would be allowed to stay in place for up to 180 days before they'd have to be moved to meet the same 600-foot relocation requirement the city would be imposing on other trailers and RVs.

The proposed new Longmont regulations would not affect any homeowners association rules that prohibit RV parking on HOA streets.

Enforcement would be on a complaint-received basis. A resident could contact the Code Enforcement Office or police department to report a violation. The enforcement officer would go to the vehicle's location, place a tag on the vehicle and a chalk mark on a tire, requiring the vehicle to be relocated within 72 hours.

After 72 hours, the enforcement official would go back to the vehicle to see whether it has been moved at least 600 feet. If it hasn't, a citation could be issued — with the vehicle's owner then facing a possible $50 fine — or the vehicle could be towed away.

If given initial council approval on Tuesday night, the ordinance would be set for a public hearing and possible final council action on Aug. 22.

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